Australian Music and Modernism, 1960-1975

Drawing on newly available archival material, key works, and correspondence of the era, Australian Music and Modernism defines "Australian Music" as an idea that emerged through the lens of the modernist discourse of the 1960s and 70s. At the same time that the new "Australian Music" was distinctive of the nation, it was also thoroughly connected to practices from Europe and shaped by a new engagement with the music of Southeast Asia. This book examines the intersection of nationalism and modernism at this formative time.
During the early stages of "Australian Music" there was disagreement about what the idea itself ought to represent and, indeed, whether the idea ought to apply at all. Michael Hooper considers various perspectives offered by such composers as Peter Sculthorpe, Richard Meale, and Nigel Butterley and analyzes some of the era's significant works to articulate a complex understanding of "Australian Music" at its inception.

Michael Hooper is Senior Lecturer in Music at the University of New South Wales, Australia, where from 2012-2015 he was an ARC Research Fellow. He is the author of The Music of David Lumsdaine (2012) and Roger Smalley on Music (forthcoming 2018).

List of Examples List of Figures List of Tables Permissions Acknowledgements Introduction: Australian Music Now 1. The Formation of an Academic Discourse of Australian Music 2. Infrastructure for New Music, Serial Technique and Don Banks's String Quartet (1975) 3. Richard Meale I: Sydney 4. Nigel Butterley: Australian Music and Britain 5. Peter Sculthorpe: Australian Music and Nationalism 6. Richard Meale II: Adelaide 7. Landscapes in painting and literature: Lumsdaine and Sculthorpe Notes Bibliography Index